Lewisham campaign victory - for now.

 

 

This was a very welcome email in my inbox this morning, cheered me up no end. Except of course, Hunt has already indicated that he will now change the law to allow him to do just this. But for now;

 

 

Robin Priestley - 38 Degrees <action@38degrees.org.uk> 

38 Degrees

Dear friend,

 

Great news just in. Health Minister Jeremy Hunt has been beaten in court ... AGAIN!

 

In August, a judge ruled that Hunt had acted illegally by deciding to cut A&E and maternity services at Lewisham hospital. Hunt appealed the decision, and today he lost again. The court of appeal ruled that he does not have the power to implement cuts at the successful hospital. [1]

 

It’s the result we’d all been hoping for, and is wonderful news for the people of Lewisham and the 38 Degrees members who chipped in to help fund the legal challenge.

 

 When the Save Lewisham Hospital campaign decided to take Jeremy Hunt to court, thousands of us from all across the UK stepped in to help. Together, chipping in whatever we could afford, we raised the £20,000 they needed to launch their legal challenge. [2]

 

This isn’t just great news for Lewisham though, it’ll show Hunt he can’t break the law and get away with it. If he’d have got away with cutting services here, then no hospital would have been safe.

 

 Rosa Curling from law firm Leigh Day, who represented the Save Lewisham Hospital Group said: "We are absolutely delighted with the Court of Appeal's decision today. It confirms what the Save Lewisham Hospital campaign has been arguing from the start - that the Secretary of State did not have the legal power to close and downgrade services at Lewisham Hospital."

 

"This expensive waste of time for the government should serve as a wake up call that they cannot ride roughshod over the needs of the people.” [3]

 

So lets make sure we remember the Save Lewisham Hospital campaign’s victory and everyone who’s given a helping hand along the way. This is an exciting day for our campaign to save our NHS. And while the battle’s not over yet, it’s important to celebrate the victories we have.

 

It’s moments like this that make it even more important that we stop the government from silencing ordinary people with the gagging law. It reminds us of the important role that campaign groups and charities play, keeping the government in check and campaigning on issues that are important. That's why we're so focussed on defeating it! [4]

 

But we’re still keeping you under observation Jeremy!

 

 Thank you for everything you do

 

 Robin, Blanche, Ian and the 38 Degrees team

 

 

 PS: Why not forward this email to your friends, it’s great to spread the good news. Today’s victory shows that people power works, and that’s an incredibly important story to tell.

 

Neil Harris

(a don’t stop till you drop production)

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